Madrid judge hears arguments for and against Super League

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This article was published 14/03/2024 (932 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

MADRID (AP) — A Madrid judge heard arguments for and against the Super League on Thursday, less than three months after the European Union’s top court said UEFA and FIFA acted unlawfully to block the rebel competition.

The Madrid court had asked the European Union to weigh in on whether the soccer governing bodies breached European law by allegedly abusing their market dominance. The European court said they did.

The Spanish judge heard new arguments by the parties promoting and opposing the competition, and it was expected to make a ruling in a few weeks.

Among those in the Madrid court on Thursday were lawyers for the Super League, UEFA and A22 Sports Management, the Madrid-based company trying to promote the competition.

There were no representatives of Real Madrid or Barcelona, the only clubs still left in the breakaway project that was launched in 2021 and quickly collapsed after protests by fans across Europe.

José Antonio del Valle, a partner at Cremades & Calvo-Sotelo law firm, said the difference between this court’s decision and the one made by the European court is that this ruling must directly address the Super League.

“It is not a minor question,” he told The Associated Press in a written response. “The Spanish judge will have to make her interpretation and issue a ruling about the concrete suit of the Super League.”

Del Valle added that the ruling will likely be appealed to a higher Spanish court by one side or the other.

Promoters of the new competition lost a recent legal battle when the EU Intellectual Property Office said it cannot be registered under the Super League trademark because it is “conceptually identical” to the Super Liga in Denmark.

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AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer